TCCA's Critical Communications Europe to Host Joint Event with BAPCO Annual Conference & Exhibition for the First Time

Critical Communications Europe (CC Europe), Europe’s leading conference and exhibition dedicated to connecting critical communications professionals, will take place in conjunction with the BAPCO Annual Conference & Exhibition for the first time. The event will take place at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry, UK from 12-13 March 2019.

CC Europe is produced by TCCA alongside event organiser MA Exhibitions. The colocation of the two events will provide all those working within the critical communications sector a unique opportunity to connect, network, and discuss all things related to critical communications and public safety solutions.

This year’s exhibition will feature leading industry specialists including Motorola Solutions, Frequentis AG, Samsung and Ericsson; an exciting Drone Zone; a Showcase Theatre and an elegant gala dinner hosted by BAPCO, all designed to enable participants to share knowledge, information and ideas.

The two-day conference comprises CC Europe and BAPCO hosted streams focusing on the opportunities and challenges facing the critical communications and public safety industries. Some of the presentations and keynote sessions from both days are outlined below:

Day one:
CC Europe Stream, 9.15 - 9.45am: Keynote Address: Virve broadband plans for the future, presented by Jarmo Vinkvist, CEO, Suominen Virveverkko, Part of Erillisverkot Group

CC Europe Stream, 9.45 - 10.00am: Keynote Address: A broadband strategy for German public safety radio, presented by Barbara Held, Head of Directorate - Strategy and Central Management, BDBOS

BAPCO Stream, 9.30 - 10.00: Keynote Address: Global cooperation and coordination for public safety wireless programs, presented by Edward Parkinson, CEO, FirstNet

Day two:
CC Europe Stream, 9.30-10.00: Keynote Address: Critical communications standards supporting a multi-vendor and interoperable environment, presented by Adrian Scrase, CTO, ETSI & Head of MCC, 3GPP

BAPCO Stream, 9.30 - 10.00: Keynote Address - Bryan Clarke, ESN Programme Director, Home Office

CC Europe Stream, 2.15 - 3.00: – Panel discussion: Spectrum for critical communications, chaired by Jeppe Jepsen, Director of Spectrum, TCCA, with participants; Peter Curnow-Ford, Managing Partner, Viatec, Noel Kirkaldy, Business Development Director, Public Sector, Nokia, and David Chater-Lea, Fellow of the Technical Staff, Motorola Solutions.

TCCA Chair Mladen Vratonjić said: “We welcome the opportunity to bring a wider European community to the established and successful BAPCO Show and together organize a European critical communications event. We will work hard to the benefit of all our members to ensure they receive even more value from this combined event."

Tony Gray, TCCA Chief Executive, said: “This collaboration between TCCA and BAPCO is a great opportunity to bring the best of both worlds to members of the critical communications space here in Europe. The event will give TCCA members unparalleled access to the latest technological innovations and unique networking opportunities with the industry’s leading critical communications practitioners.”

Ian Thompson, Chief Executive Officer, BAPCO said: “We constantly strive to improve our events and to bring greater benefits to our members and our community. We can all learn from each other and by working together we increase our knowledge and improve public safety and critical communications for everybody’s benefit. I’m extremely pleased and proud to have worked so closely with colleagues in TCCA and to be part of this joint event.”

BAPCO President John Anthony said: “Last year’s BAPCO event was a roaring success which proved it to be a must-attend event for everyone involved in critical communications and public safety communications, and with the help of TCCA we can expect this year’s joint event to reach even greater heights.”